Real or fake: what does it take?
What is fake, what is real- in Hong Kong everything and nothing, anything always all the time, every day. And what is the “real” China?
This is a pretty lousy and too generalized approach of attempting at summarizing the whirl of chaotic thoughts in my head. I like to be structured especially since I can’t be there personally to elaborate and explain what I want to say. So to the point:
We went to see the “real” China today (Wednesday, Jan. 25). Whatever “real” the contextual classification of the word. And “we” is Joel and Martin from Sweden and Erkki, my dear roommate (who by the way is not gay, just to avoid any mis-understandings …). Surprise, I really get along well with the Swedes- or at least so far- and we have a well-functioning little group. Group- building here is another very interesting development as more and more people have arrived during the past couple of days. There is clearly the group of “first-arrivals” and “party-people”, anything in between, as well as a little divide between Americans vs. Europeans and other (also funnily including U.S. citizens which do not want to be seen as “Americans”)- most people are from the U.S. An interesting dynamic as if starting school all over –turning the time back two years- and trying to find people o “your” kind. I feel, it is a very important time to be here, since I guess although everyone is quite open and friendly, things will change and group building will be one of the better-not-miss- developments.
Anyway, the day started pretty shittily so to say. Erkki was supposed to wake me up and we were supposed to meet Joel and Martin at Uni for breakfast at 8:30. Erkki did wake me up, but only at 8:30 which meant we were really late. On top of that I was still drunk. How great is that? I am so embarrassed to write this since I thought I was out of “that typical” college age where one really gets uncontrollably wasted, but hey, I promised: no censorship (or well, I will spare some details of course). So I have to write it. To explain my physical state I have to go back to yesterdays (Tuesdays, Jan. 24) happenings.
The day was relaxed- I slept well for the first night here and woke up at noon- which is again explained by going for a late dinner in Soho (great Mexican food) and good drinks with some other exchange students as well as walking through Lang Kwai Fong (the party quarter) on Monday. I went to Uni for some food and got books to read as well as explored campus and the sea shore at campus which I had only seen by night and in the morning until then with Julie- just sitting on the pier and enjoying the breeze (which is now warmer at around 15-18C). It s actually not that big because there is a lot of space and green in between buildings and everything is scattered, the area covered s huge though.
Anyway, we met some exchange students later on and heard of a bar opening at Wanchai. Wanchai is located on HK Island and I known as the HK “red mile”- by day and night. But it has good clubs too- as was this: located on the 21st and 22nd floor with a great view onto other “skyscrapers”, good music and … free drinks! And “open bar” à la K style means yes, free drinks but since it was so crowded that basically translates into free bottles of vodka champagne, whiskey etc. which is time efficient and thus more practical. Imagine the results! A bunch of jet-lagged American and Canadian kids (and some Finns), most my age, nobody knows each other and everyone is on a student budget, plus free bottles of alcohol? Not good…. Well, unfortunately, I can now incude myself in the group (I have “assimilated”) at least for one evening…! Facit: it was fun, I slept two hours and woke up drunk…
Joel and Martin however are great guys (and although I am usually punctual and appreciate that also in others), they waited and together we went to Kowloon to get our visas for China. We had left our passports at a Japanese travel agency on Monday: a multiple entry visa for six months is HKD 450, which is pretty cheap considering that you have unrestricted entry. Well, the part that the travel agency was Japanese is important because in that quarter in East Kowloon there seems to be a concentration of Japanese stores and restaurants- including the BEST sushi place I have seen here in Hong Kong! Great food! (Anyone who comes here: remind me of taking you there! HKD 9 a plate…) KCR (Kowloon China Railway) East Rail goes directly in 40 minutes from the center of Kowloon to the border of the new territories with China. The train is high tech- a lot of people commute daily back and forth since living outside HK is much cheaper. Whether that China on the other side is “real” remains questionable- HK is a special administrative region (SAR), as is Shenzhen, the city at the border with the HK New Territories in the north.
Shenzhen is industrial, a continuum of the HK concept of “the whole city is a shopping mall”, but prices are much lower and most of the products sold are copies. One can buy everything from “Chinese” ipods to jewellery, shoes and (fake) real bags. We walked around town for the whole afternoon, but saw only a tiny part of the eastern part of the city, which as a whole is pretty big. It was founded only in 1979 and now grows as fast as Shanghai with currently 3.95 million inhabitants and the highest per capita GDP in China (except HK). So how Chinese is that? Probably not very, but in any case, the city- though modern- is very different from HK: people are clothed differently, there are shoe cleaners and all kinds of vendors on the streets, there are more beggars. In the malls people try to drag you into shops- it is like an uproar if anyone western is walking through which makes me personally feel very uncomfortable. “missy, mistah, buy bag, watch, dvd, cd….” Whatever. White = Western = rich and it is ok to take as much off them as goes. It’s fake it’s cheating. But it’s real.
We attracted a reasonable amount of attention just walking in the streets: blond and tall I guess compared to everyone else (speaking of the guys). We had a great time and learned a lot- never get your shoes cleaned, trust the right amount, avoid getting into situations with no way out but getting ripped off- it was like a first step into China. Or that is what I would like to think. And not to make everything sound too negative, a funny little scene: we were walking in the suburbs, with little kitchens and smells on every corner and old women selling tiny oranges off shabby wooden boxes near the sidewalks. Since we only had –freshly exchanged- 100 dollar bills and of course no street vendor would have change for that- Erkki decided he would trade apples for oranges. They did not completely get it and were really confused- since tourists are only supposed to pay with money and not be too proactive. But in the end it worked and they were all laughing, chatting and got nice apples- and we got tiny juicy oranges!
We went back by train and I stopped in Mongkok to buy some jogging shoes and sports clothing since the track is really nice and it is warm enough to go running (what I generyll do when it is warm)- I really didn’t even think of bringing half the stuff I need here! No wonder, I had 15 kg including some books and bedsheets which does not leave much room for other things. Ok, I can buy more here and be sure I will have room to transport it back- but although cheap, nothing is free! Of course. Just watching the crowd in Mongkok makes one realize: HK is rich. The people have money to spend on clothes and lifestyle; that shows on the streets, even if going into the more non-tourist areas. Watching people as they watch me is in general really interesting: guessing the age of people is difficult for me, since Asians do not have “wrinkles” or other determinants of age typical for westerners which I subconsciously detect when thinking of age. People my age (guessing) wear a mixture of colorful Indy-clothes, mixed with cute-hello-kitty and other more funky stuff that works on skinny, lightly build bodies- and it’s the combination that generates the style. It is fascinating and I think I could never blend in- not sure if I even would want to.
I had some discussions about this with Simon, who has been here since August and has been traveling a lot in China, about collectivism and the Chinese society under the system vs. individuals. I feel that in HK people are to certain extend a mass- this is one element of the safety here that I mentioned before- and this conformity is partly automatically generated culturally but often questioned and extended through e.g. clothing. This is the real difference between HK and Shenzhen- not the fake bags (which everyone has in HK too).
However, the group is closed in looks and way of thinking and I could never overcome the barrier. Reaching over temporarily is however easy if you bring some patience. We met some people in the sushi bar and a CD vendor importing French, Swedish and German CDs on his own and selling them in front of the KCR station and exchanged email addresses to get some local contacts- and they write and offer advice. So interest is there; judging the understanding is difficult.
With shoes, clothes and some IKEA items I am practically set now and have to restrain myself from shopping- instead I am making lists of what I have to absolutely buy- the lists get longer every day. Some words about IKEA (we went there on Sunday): a prime example of local adaptation. There are ice creams and hot dogs, but no Sweden-shop. Other products are the same, the layout and store design is different. No round walkways, no conveyor belt at the cashier, no kötbullar. Plants are marketed and categorized according to the “feng shui”: either bringing health, happiness, money or something else. IKEA is expensive; a little piece of Scandinavia in HK… we decided that when getting homesick, we will stop by to get some pepperkakor, Estrella chips and just to walk through. (We did also now buy chips –I never buy chips- but maybe it was too early for that? They were REALLY good though…)
The rest of the time went in sleeping (a bit at least) and trying to meet as may people as possible. I am a bit afraid of missing something all the time- this is crazy since I have only been here one (!) week- it seems like so much longer! I don’t know where this feeling comes from, but it is just there and I should relax more and take it easy…But I just feel I need to know everything now- and as much as possible. We have been walking around Kowloon and Soho a lot and my feet hurt terribly. Everyone is preparing for the Chinese New Year coming up this weekend- paper and light decorations (including red light chains which make the sounds of exploding fireworks) and little orange trees have been appearing everywhere. Some nice finance conversations about the job market and investment banking, but mostly people are concerned of how to combine studying and partying. Students here apparently never leave campus –ok, traveling and public transport are expensive- and study all day and night. Usually people are awake until 3 or 4 a.m. and even if the hasn’t started yet I have seen people sleeping with their books in the coffee shop. Grades are given based on relative performance (“curved”)- in most classes the average is around 85 and for a “B” one needs over 90%- that is just crazy! I have now officially lowered my expectations to simply passing my classes- that is all I want!!! I will hear more on Friday on our official academic orientation on Friday, 10 a.m. (let’s hope I’m fit since Thursday is Ladies night =free drinks); spring term starts after the holidays on Feb. 1. I’ll se then… but what I know now is that I will also try to see more of HK and not only travel abroad- maybe go hiking (there are great trails in the new territories)- and spend some time in the library- it’s huge with sliding bookshelves that have sensors for the lighting etc.
Wrapping it up (it’s now 2:30 a.m.): real or fake- everyone decides on the mixture, but you have to make yourself really see the distinctions- in people, things, cities, facades… and this applies to any culture but maybe more to those that are closed and intransparent for the outsiders (depending of course on outsider priorities ad principals). Does the difference matter- it is contextual I would constate diplomatically, but essential if self-deception is not a declared goal of existence.
Intense days, a lot of thoughts - now I freed some space in my head.
Lessons learned:
1. I will never again trust Erkki to wake me up (on time).
2. Thou shall not be tempted by the expression “open bar”.
3. Define fake and real for yourself- always.
This is a pretty lousy and too generalized approach of attempting at summarizing the whirl of chaotic thoughts in my head. I like to be structured especially since I can’t be there personally to elaborate and explain what I want to say. So to the point:
We went to see the “real” China today (Wednesday, Jan. 25). Whatever “real” the contextual classification of the word. And “we” is Joel and Martin from Sweden and Erkki, my dear roommate (who by the way is not gay, just to avoid any mis-understandings …). Surprise, I really get along well with the Swedes- or at least so far- and we have a well-functioning little group. Group- building here is another very interesting development as more and more people have arrived during the past couple of days. There is clearly the group of “first-arrivals” and “party-people”, anything in between, as well as a little divide between Americans vs. Europeans and other (also funnily including U.S. citizens which do not want to be seen as “Americans”)- most people are from the U.S. An interesting dynamic as if starting school all over –turning the time back two years- and trying to find people o “your” kind. I feel, it is a very important time to be here, since I guess although everyone is quite open and friendly, things will change and group building will be one of the better-not-miss- developments.
Anyway, the day started pretty shittily so to say. Erkki was supposed to wake me up and we were supposed to meet Joel and Martin at Uni for breakfast at 8:30. Erkki did wake me up, but only at 8:30 which meant we were really late. On top of that I was still drunk. How great is that? I am so embarrassed to write this since I thought I was out of “that typical” college age where one really gets uncontrollably wasted, but hey, I promised: no censorship (or well, I will spare some details of course). So I have to write it. To explain my physical state I have to go back to yesterdays (Tuesdays, Jan. 24) happenings.
The day was relaxed- I slept well for the first night here and woke up at noon- which is again explained by going for a late dinner in Soho (great Mexican food) and good drinks with some other exchange students as well as walking through Lang Kwai Fong (the party quarter) on Monday. I went to Uni for some food and got books to read as well as explored campus and the sea shore at campus which I had only seen by night and in the morning until then with Julie- just sitting on the pier and enjoying the breeze (which is now warmer at around 15-18C). It s actually not that big because there is a lot of space and green in between buildings and everything is scattered, the area covered s huge though.
Anyway, we met some exchange students later on and heard of a bar opening at Wanchai. Wanchai is located on HK Island and I known as the HK “red mile”- by day and night. But it has good clubs too- as was this: located on the 21st and 22nd floor with a great view onto other “skyscrapers”, good music and … free drinks! And “open bar” à la K style means yes, free drinks but since it was so crowded that basically translates into free bottles of vodka champagne, whiskey etc. which is time efficient and thus more practical. Imagine the results! A bunch of jet-lagged American and Canadian kids (and some Finns), most my age, nobody knows each other and everyone is on a student budget, plus free bottles of alcohol? Not good…. Well, unfortunately, I can now incude myself in the group (I have “assimilated”) at least for one evening…! Facit: it was fun, I slept two hours and woke up drunk…
Joel and Martin however are great guys (and although I am usually punctual and appreciate that also in others), they waited and together we went to Kowloon to get our visas for China. We had left our passports at a Japanese travel agency on Monday: a multiple entry visa for six months is HKD 450, which is pretty cheap considering that you have unrestricted entry. Well, the part that the travel agency was Japanese is important because in that quarter in East Kowloon there seems to be a concentration of Japanese stores and restaurants- including the BEST sushi place I have seen here in Hong Kong! Great food! (Anyone who comes here: remind me of taking you there! HKD 9 a plate…) KCR (Kowloon China Railway) East Rail goes directly in 40 minutes from the center of Kowloon to the border of the new territories with China. The train is high tech- a lot of people commute daily back and forth since living outside HK is much cheaper. Whether that China on the other side is “real” remains questionable- HK is a special administrative region (SAR), as is Shenzhen, the city at the border with the HK New Territories in the north.
Shenzhen is industrial, a continuum of the HK concept of “the whole city is a shopping mall”, but prices are much lower and most of the products sold are copies. One can buy everything from “Chinese” ipods to jewellery, shoes and (fake) real bags. We walked around town for the whole afternoon, but saw only a tiny part of the eastern part of the city, which as a whole is pretty big. It was founded only in 1979 and now grows as fast as Shanghai with currently 3.95 million inhabitants and the highest per capita GDP in China (except HK). So how Chinese is that? Probably not very, but in any case, the city- though modern- is very different from HK: people are clothed differently, there are shoe cleaners and all kinds of vendors on the streets, there are more beggars. In the malls people try to drag you into shops- it is like an uproar if anyone western is walking through which makes me personally feel very uncomfortable. “missy, mistah, buy bag, watch, dvd, cd….” Whatever. White = Western = rich and it is ok to take as much off them as goes. It’s fake it’s cheating. But it’s real.
We attracted a reasonable amount of attention just walking in the streets: blond and tall I guess compared to everyone else (speaking of the guys). We had a great time and learned a lot- never get your shoes cleaned, trust the right amount, avoid getting into situations with no way out but getting ripped off- it was like a first step into China. Or that is what I would like to think. And not to make everything sound too negative, a funny little scene: we were walking in the suburbs, with little kitchens and smells on every corner and old women selling tiny oranges off shabby wooden boxes near the sidewalks. Since we only had –freshly exchanged- 100 dollar bills and of course no street vendor would have change for that- Erkki decided he would trade apples for oranges. They did not completely get it and were really confused- since tourists are only supposed to pay with money and not be too proactive. But in the end it worked and they were all laughing, chatting and got nice apples- and we got tiny juicy oranges!
We went back by train and I stopped in Mongkok to buy some jogging shoes and sports clothing since the track is really nice and it is warm enough to go running (what I generyll do when it is warm)- I really didn’t even think of bringing half the stuff I need here! No wonder, I had 15 kg including some books and bedsheets which does not leave much room for other things. Ok, I can buy more here and be sure I will have room to transport it back- but although cheap, nothing is free! Of course. Just watching the crowd in Mongkok makes one realize: HK is rich. The people have money to spend on clothes and lifestyle; that shows on the streets, even if going into the more non-tourist areas. Watching people as they watch me is in general really interesting: guessing the age of people is difficult for me, since Asians do not have “wrinkles” or other determinants of age typical for westerners which I subconsciously detect when thinking of age. People my age (guessing) wear a mixture of colorful Indy-clothes, mixed with cute-hello-kitty and other more funky stuff that works on skinny, lightly build bodies- and it’s the combination that generates the style. It is fascinating and I think I could never blend in- not sure if I even would want to.
I had some discussions about this with Simon, who has been here since August and has been traveling a lot in China, about collectivism and the Chinese society under the system vs. individuals. I feel that in HK people are to certain extend a mass- this is one element of the safety here that I mentioned before- and this conformity is partly automatically generated culturally but often questioned and extended through e.g. clothing. This is the real difference between HK and Shenzhen- not the fake bags (which everyone has in HK too).
However, the group is closed in looks and way of thinking and I could never overcome the barrier. Reaching over temporarily is however easy if you bring some patience. We met some people in the sushi bar and a CD vendor importing French, Swedish and German CDs on his own and selling them in front of the KCR station and exchanged email addresses to get some local contacts- and they write and offer advice. So interest is there; judging the understanding is difficult.
With shoes, clothes and some IKEA items I am practically set now and have to restrain myself from shopping- instead I am making lists of what I have to absolutely buy- the lists get longer every day. Some words about IKEA (we went there on Sunday): a prime example of local adaptation. There are ice creams and hot dogs, but no Sweden-shop. Other products are the same, the layout and store design is different. No round walkways, no conveyor belt at the cashier, no kötbullar. Plants are marketed and categorized according to the “feng shui”: either bringing health, happiness, money or something else. IKEA is expensive; a little piece of Scandinavia in HK… we decided that when getting homesick, we will stop by to get some pepperkakor, Estrella chips and just to walk through. (We did also now buy chips –I never buy chips- but maybe it was too early for that? They were REALLY good though…)
The rest of the time went in sleeping (a bit at least) and trying to meet as may people as possible. I am a bit afraid of missing something all the time- this is crazy since I have only been here one (!) week- it seems like so much longer! I don’t know where this feeling comes from, but it is just there and I should relax more and take it easy…But I just feel I need to know everything now- and as much as possible. We have been walking around Kowloon and Soho a lot and my feet hurt terribly. Everyone is preparing for the Chinese New Year coming up this weekend- paper and light decorations (including red light chains which make the sounds of exploding fireworks) and little orange trees have been appearing everywhere. Some nice finance conversations about the job market and investment banking, but mostly people are concerned of how to combine studying and partying. Students here apparently never leave campus –ok, traveling and public transport are expensive- and study all day and night. Usually people are awake until 3 or 4 a.m. and even if the hasn’t started yet I have seen people sleeping with their books in the coffee shop. Grades are given based on relative performance (“curved”)- in most classes the average is around 85 and for a “B” one needs over 90%- that is just crazy! I have now officially lowered my expectations to simply passing my classes- that is all I want!!! I will hear more on Friday on our official academic orientation on Friday, 10 a.m. (let’s hope I’m fit since Thursday is Ladies night =free drinks); spring term starts after the holidays on Feb. 1. I’ll se then… but what I know now is that I will also try to see more of HK and not only travel abroad- maybe go hiking (there are great trails in the new territories)- and spend some time in the library- it’s huge with sliding bookshelves that have sensors for the lighting etc.
Wrapping it up (it’s now 2:30 a.m.): real or fake- everyone decides on the mixture, but you have to make yourself really see the distinctions- in people, things, cities, facades… and this applies to any culture but maybe more to those that are closed and intransparent for the outsiders (depending of course on outsider priorities ad principals). Does the difference matter- it is contextual I would constate diplomatically, but essential if self-deception is not a declared goal of existence.
Intense days, a lot of thoughts - now I freed some space in my head.
Lessons learned:
1. I will never again trust Erkki to wake me up (on time).
2. Thou shall not be tempted by the expression “open bar”.
3. Define fake and real for yourself- always.
Images from Shenzhen: We were really scared that we would not get back anymore since it says on or visa: single journey only. And all the papers and exit/entry cards, quequeing at both HK and China checkpoints, in between a channel and barbed wire fence.... Apparently we have equal status as HK residents, which means we are not classified as "foreigners"... nice surprise among all the bureaucracy!.jpg)
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